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As the father of a United States Marine and a plaintiff’s personal injury attorney I get particularly worked up, and offended, when I hear stories about government contractors making money at the expense of our troops, particularly when it involves defective equipment our troops rely upon for their safety. 3M Company (hereinafter “3M”) sold Dual-Ended Combat Arms Earplugs (CAEv2), which were standard issue for several branches of the armed services during foreign conflicts between 2003 to 2015. The two-sided earplugs were intended to perform two functions: when used in the closed or blocked (Olive End In) – they block out sound like traditional earplugs. When used in the open or unblocked (Yellow End In) they should block or significantly reduce loud impulse sounds such as gunfire and explosions, while still allowing the wearer to communicate with other soldiers. The earplugs were initially manufactured by Aearo Technologies which was acquired by 3M in 2008. Since 2000 Aearo Technologies knew that test results demonstrated that the noise reduction rating for the earplugs was 0, meaning the combat earplugs had no noise reduction benefits. Despite the earplugs failing safety test after safety test, 3M moved forward with selling the defective product to the US Government. 3M and Aearo Technologies manipulated the test results to meet the US Government’s required product standards. 3M was aware that the earplugs were not long enough to be properly inserted into a soldiers’ ear canal. Due to the incorrect length, the earplugs would become loose and ultimately become completely useless to the user. Due to these defective earplugs, there has been a noticeable increase in tinnitus (ringing or buzzing in the ears) and hearing loss, among our troops and veterans. 3M recently settled a False Claims Act claim* with the US Government, for $9.1 million dollars**, involving the sale of defectively designed combat earplugs. While the above settlement resolved the fraud claim brought by the government, that settlement does not provide compensation for those members of the military who suffered personal injury as a result of using the earplugs. Those suffering from hearing problems such a tinnitus and/or a hearing loss, as a result of the defective earplugs while in combat or in training, may be eligible for compensation separate and apart from the government’s settlement. * **

Several blogs on this page have talked about the limits that landowners run into when trying to get reasonable compensation or repairs for their property when affected by mine subsidence. While the West Virginia Supreme Court recently issued rulings which seem to provide even more protections to coal operators there was one glimmer of hope for individual landowners. West Virginia mining laws provide limited protections to landowners, but one such law was recently interpreted to make clear that it is the landowner that gets to decide whether the coal company will actual fix their home or merely pay them the decrease in value caused by the mining damage. The actual repairs are most often much more expensive than the decrease in value. Lobbyists for the coal industry have succeeded in getting members of our legislature to seek changes to the law giving that right to decide between fixing and/or paying a decreased value claim back to the coal companies. Hidden amongst a bill supposedly related to “Coal Mine Safety” is a provision that seeks to change what the WVSCA stated last year. The House version of the bill, HB 2875, seems to be stalled in committee, but there is rumor that the WV Senate may be presenting a similar bill before the deadline to submit bills runs. Most people find it unbelievable that a deed from over 100 years ago can include coal mining damage waivers that would still be enforced today. People have bought and built their dream homes only to have the ground literally ripped out from underneath of them. With all the protections the coal companies have, allowing a landowner to decide that they want their home fixed should not be on attack from our elected officials. Given the immense value the coal company gets from selling the coal under someone’s house, they should not be asking for more power to deprive those homeowners from recourse or repair.

Having officiated high school and college basketball for 25 years, I can sympathize with the official who missed the critical pass interference call in the recent NFC Championship game. For those who have avoided TV, radio, print media, the internet, and pretty much any other form of human contact over the past few weeks, allow me to explain. The game was tied at 20 with 1:45 remaining, and the Saints had the ball at the Rams’ 13 yard line, 3rd and 10. Drew Brees dropped back to pass, and lofted the ball toward receiver Tommy Lee Lewis, who had beaten the defense. As the ball approached, the Rams’ defensive back, who later admitted he knew a TD was about to happen, blew Lewis up. This wasn’t a case of arguable contact. It wasn’t a case where the two players were jostling with each other for position. The defender ran straight into Lewis, wiping him out. The ball fell incomplete, and everyone in the stadium was waiting for the flag. It never came. Regulation time expired with the score tied, and the Rams ended up winning in overtime. Saints fans, knowing they likely would have run down the clock and won the game with a chip-shot field goal had the penalty been called, were outraged. I was watching that game, and I was just as shocked as everyone else that the penalty was not called. I convinced myself that the Saints defense would be able to hold the Rams from scoring in the last minute of regulation. They didn’t. I was confident that Brees would lead his troops to a game-winning TD in overtime; instead, he threw an interception. A 57-yard field goal decided it: Rams go to the Super Bowl; Saints go fishing. When the game was over, I felt badly for the Saints players and their fans. I felt worse for the official responsible for the missed call. I would probably feel differently if I was a Saints fan, but I’m not. I’m an official (now retired), and like every other man or woman who has put on the stripes, I know what it feels like to kick an important call. It literally makes you sick to your stomach. I remember a sectional tournament game I was working years ago at Lincoln High School. The game was a mismatch; Lincoln was up by 25. The opponents had one very good player, we’ll call him #33, who had 4 personal fouls. I remember thinking how important it was to make sure his 5th foul was an obvious call. We didn’t want to foul him out on a borderline call. A few moments later, I was the lead official when #33 came barreling down the lane toward the hoop. A defender was there, in perfect position, not moving a muscle. This was going to be an easy charge, I thought. My God, he’s going to pancake that poor defender. #33 went airborne, and I knew what was coming. Just as the contact was happening, I blew my whistle and came out with the charging call. Flashy. Big time. Just watch me sell this one. Teddy Valentine got nothin’ on me. But there was one very big problem: at the very last moment, right before the contact I was anticipating, #33 turned his body in mid-air, and barely glanced off the defender’s shoulder. An obvious no-call, but I had already blown my whistle. I had already called the charge. I had already ended the season for #33. I am not exaggerating when I say that I felt like I could vomit, right there on the floor. The thought occurred to me that #33 might be a senior, whose basketball career had ended with a horrible call going against him. (After the game, when I approached him and his coach to apologize, I found out he was a junior. Whew!!) My gaffe happened with maybe 1,000 people watching. The NFL official in the Rams/Saints game kicked one in front of millions. Officials do what they do because they love the game. They work, they study, and they train, all with the intent to do the best job they can possibly do. No matter how much work we do; no matter how much we prepare, there are going to be calls that are missed. Views are blocked, concentration is interrupted, judgment is incorrect. It happens, and it will always happen. When it does, try to keep in mind that no one feels worse than the official who missed it. Image courtesy of USA Today FTW.

If you find yourself in the unfortunate predicament of being involved in a car wreck caused by another motorist, you may well find yourself in yet another unfortunate predicament when you attempt to obtain compensation for your injuries and damages. Namely, if the person who caused the wreck has insurance, that insurance company is not likely to do anything to try to reasonably, fairly, promptly and objectively settle your claim until and unless you file a lawsuit. The insurance company knows that if you file a lawsuit, you cannot name the insurance company in the suit. Rather, you have to name the person driving the vehicle that caused the wreck. Thus, what if you are involved in an accident in your neighborhood that is caused by one of your good friends or, for that matter, one of your relatives. Because the insurance company of your friend and/or relative knows that you don’t want to have to sue anyone to get your case reasonably resolved, let alone your friend or relative that caused the wreck, you will take pennies on the dollar for the value of your claim. It is unfortunate, but it is reality. When you file a lawsuit as a result of a wreck caused by a third person, you can only sue the person that caused the wreck, not that person’s insurance company. Indeed, if the case goes to trial, the jury is never told that the person who caused the wreck has insurance. Even though some jurors might recognize that insurance is most likely involved, they will have no idea how much insurance is available. Insurance companies intentionally try to mislead juries into thinking that the person who caused the wreck is going to be financially ruined by any verdict returned. It would be nice if juries were allowed to know that the vast majority of individuals who are sued have insurance to pay for any judgment that is returned. Unfortunately, the rules of evidence do not allow that to occur and that is not likely to change.

If you cannot resolve a dispute with a business or person and the amount in controversy is less than $10,000, you may want to look at filing your case in Magistrate Court. Every county in West Virginia has at least 2 magistrates. Some larger counties have more.  Magistrates are elected and do not have to be lawyers. When deciding whether to file your case in Magistrate Court, the following are some questions you may want to consider: 1. What kind of case do I have? – (i.e., is it criminal or civil) 2. Can I resolve my issue without going to court? – (i.e., can I talk with the person/business and come to an agreement before filing suit) 3. Can I handle my case without a lawyer? – (i.e., do I have questions about the process that I don’t understand, do I have questions about the amount in controversy, etc….) Some of the types of cases that can be filed in Magistrate Court are landlord tenant disputes, contractual disputes, property damage disputes, etc….  However, remember the amount in controversy must be less than $10,000.  Once you’ve considered some of these questions and decided to file suit in Magistrate Court, you should contact the magistrate office to obtain the necessary filing forms. Finally, remember, if you are unsure as to whether you should file in magistrate court or just feel unsure about the process, it is probably a good idea to initially consult with an attorney.  Often times they can be very helpful in determining if magistrate court is appropriate for your situation.

Even before you sign a contract to have an attorney represent you on a legal claim, you may have documents that relate to your claim and potential lawsuit. These could include accident or police reports, medical records and bills, or even notes that you have taken yourself to document what happened. Once you do meet with an attorney, you will encounter even more documents. You will typically receive a copy of your fee and representation agreement with your attorney and some initial information about how your case will proceed. As the lawsuit progresses, your lawyer will send you additional documents providing updates on the case or requesting information from you. Sometimes it can seem overwhelming to receive these letters and papers, but there are ways to keep everything organized and simplify the paperwork aspect of a lawsuit. The most important thing to do when you receive a letter or other document from your attorney is to read it carefully. This may seem obvious, but it is essential that you read the documents entirely and make sure that you understand them. If you do not understand, you should call your lawyer for clarification. Even if you think that you know what the letter is going to say, read it thoroughly because it might contain a request for you to call your lawyer, appear somewhere, or collect and provide information to the law firm. Once you have read the letter you’ve received carefully, and followed through with any requests contained in the letter, you may be tempted to throw the letter away. Instead, you should keep all of the documents that your lawyer sends you until your case is resolved. Keep all papers related to your case together, in one secure location that you will not forget about. Bordas & Bordas will give you a folder during your initial meeting with your lawyer for you to store documents related to your case. Anytime you receive documents, you should place them in the folder. That way you will have everything handy for meetings with your lawyer or to review anything that has happened in your case. In addition to keeping your documents organized and in one location, you should make sure that others are not able to go through those documents. Communications between you and your lawyer, including letters, are confidential and covered by the attorney-client privilege, and that privilege can be jeopardized if others become a part of the communications. Of course, if your spouse or other family member is a part of the lawsuit, that is fine for them to look at the letters, and there are other circumstances where it is fine for you to show the documents to outside people, such as your doctor, but in general, these documents should be kept to yourself. If you are ever questioning whether it is OK to show someone else documents related to your case, always ask your lawyer.

A federal judge overseeing lawsuits alleging Bayer AG’s glyphosate-based Roundup weed killer causes cancer on Monday tentatively allowed pieces of controversial evidence that the company had hoped to exclude from upcoming trials. U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria during a hearing in a San Francisco federal court called his decision “probably most disappointing for Monsanto,” the Bayer unit that manufactures the world’s most widely used herbicide. The company denies allegations that glyphosate causes cancer and says decades of independent studies have shown the chemical to be safe for human use. Chhabria on Monday said plaintiffs could introduce some evidence of Monsanto’s alleged attempts to ghostwrite studies and influence the findings of scientists and regulators during the first phase of upcoming trials. He said documents which showed the company taking a position on the science or a study introduced during the first phase were “super relevant.” The company had hoped the judge would take a harder line on such evidence following a Jan. 3 order by Chhabria restricting evidence of corporate misconduct. At the time, that decision lifted Bayer’s shares nearly 7 percent. Monsanto had argued much of this evidence was a “sideshow” that would only distract jurors from the scientific evidence. Plaintiffs’ lawyers contended some evidence of corporate misconduct was inextricably linked to their scientific claims. The judge appeared to agree with them, saying it was difficult to draw the line between scientific evidence and allegations of corporate misconduct, and questioned whether it would be fair for the jury to not hear about the company’s alleged attempts to influence scientists. The parties did agree that other internal documents, including emails of Monsanto employees discussing lobbying efforts, do not belong in the initial trial phase. Under Chhabria’s order, that evidence would be allowed only if glyphosate was found to have caused plaintiff Edwin Hardeman’s cancer and the trial proceeded to a second phase to determine Bayer’s liability. U.S., China face major differences amid trade talks The order applies to Hardeman’s case, which is scheduled to go to trial on Feb. 25, and two other upcoming cases. There are some 620 Roundup cases before Chhabria, out of more than 9,300 nationwide. Plaintiffs’ lawyers believe corporate misconduct evidence was critical to a California state court jury’s August decision to award $289 million in a similar case. The verdict sent Bayer shares tumbling at the time, though the award was later reduced to $78 million and is under appeal.

The 2018 US Government shutdown turned out to be the longest one on record, and it should also be the last one. The US Government should not shut down. There are simply too many bad consequences suffered by Americans in all walks of life for shutdown politics to go on any longer. The ground stops at LaGuardia Airport and around the Northeast brought this most recent shutdown to an end on Friday, January 25 th. Our air traffic control system took stress after stress until finally it couldn’t take any more and it had to stop putting planes in the air, or risk catastrophe. But this is only the most visible consequence of shutdown politics. Long before the air traffic control system buckled, hundreds of thousands of Americans lost their paychecks. Some will never recover the money they earned. Some on the hard right celebrated the idea that “government workers” weren’t getting paid. “What does the government really do for us anyway?” But a closer look at those who were not paid for the entire month of January shows that they include FBI agents investigating crimes, Coast Guard men and women protecting our waterways and borders, and food inspectors ensuring that what we eat and drink is safe. And those are some of the workers who are expected to get backpay when a shutdown ends. Others are not so fortunate. In addition to hundreds of thousands of people who work directly for the Unites States Government, many more are contractors for the government. These include contractors providing logistic services to our police and military. They also include the employees of companies who provide food service at national museums and parks. Some are janitors, secretaries, some are laborers, some are accountants, and some are even lawyers. Those who are making their living doing contract work, keeping the United States running, are not guaranteed to receive any backpay. Shutdown politics unfolds on television like a spectacle and quickly gets wrapped up in who will win, the left, the right, the Democrats or the Republicans. Lost amidst the talking points and speech making by politicians is the simple fact that most Americans know that missing a month’s worth of pay can spell both short-term and long-term disaster for a family’s finances. In the short term, your paycheck may not be coming, but that doesn’t mean your credit cards, utility bills, doctor bills, and pharmacy bills don’t have to be paid. In the long term, one of the worst aspects of the modern American economy is when a family gets behind, even by a hundred dollars or a hundred and fifty dollars, the financial system tends to pile up late charges, fees, and penalties that escalate household debt to the point where far more than was borrowed (and a reasonable interest charge) is owed. Government shutdowns massively exacerbate this problem enriching banks and wealthy investors at the expense of ordinary, hardworking Americans. Just because there wasn’t an airline catastrophe, a terrorist attack, or an outbreak of foodborne illness this time around, doesn’t mean it’s an acceptable risk to run every time politicians are not getting along. The fundamental change that is required in our politics is that we negotiate only over the things we don’t agree on and that bargains and compromises are made between competing goods that each party believes in. What should not be allowed is to thrust upon the negotiating table something that nobody wants, like a government shutdown or a debt/default crisis, or some other method for inflicting pain on the country as a negotiating tool. It is an illegitimate form of political bargaining, akin to hostage taking. When political leaders insist that their method for getting what they want is going to be to inflict pain on everyone in the country until they get it, those leaders are failing the basic test of leadership. Politics in intended to be a forum for the peaceful resolution of differences through persuasion, bargaining, and compromising. Allowing it to devolve into the ugly scenario of government shutdown after government shutdown is a price that our country and its working families can no longer afford to pay.

When you hire a lawyer, and file a civil lawsuit, you will generally be given various deadlines that are initially set through the court before which your case is pending in what is called a “scheduling order.” Scheduling orders vary in content from court to court, but will all generally contain, at minimum, a date for the trial of your case, a date for a pre-trial conference in your case, and a date when the discovery in your case must be completed. Your lawyer should inform you of relevant dates set by the scheduling order in your case as soon as possible, so that you can mark your calendar and plan to be available for events that you must attend, such as the trial. During the course of your case, there may be other dates that you will need to be available, too, such as for a deposition, for an independent medical examination, or for mediation. Your lawyer’s office should communicate with you to set those date and should also remind you periodically of upcoming dates in your case that you must be aware of. However, sometimes dates in your case will change. There can be a number of reasons that this could happen, but sometimes it may seem confusing or frustrating to you when deadlines are pushed back or case events are cancelled on seemingly short notice. Here are some of the typical reasons that the dates in your civil lawsuit can change. The court may enter a new scheduling order that changes the previous trial date, pre-trial date, and other deadlines. As your case progresses, your lawyer may discover new facts or issues that can change some of the claims in your lawsuit or the types of information that will need to be gathered during discovery. The same can happen for the defendant. Either side may decide at some point as the lawsuit progresses that it should file various motions with the court asking the court to rule on certain issues, for example, ordering the other side to produce documents or information in discovery or add or dismiss certain claims or parties from the case. At times, these issues may be complex and require the court to reevaluate the time permitted to the parties to complete adequate discovery and prepare for trial, and the court may determine that more time is needed and move back the trial date and other case deadlines. Sometimes a party may specifically request that the court does this, or the parties may reach an agreement that more time is necessary and jointly ask the court to do this. If you learn that the scheduling order in your case has been changed, and the trial or other dates have been moved, you can always ask your lawyer for an explanation of why that happened and how this will affect your case. While it may seem frustrating to wait longer for your trial or have your case continue longer than you originally expected, most of the time, such changes are for the best in your case and your lawyer can explain why. There may be a stay entered in your case. At times, there may be what is called a “stay” entered in your case. This is a court ruling that essentially presses pause on the lawsuit while some other issue is resolved that greatly affects your case. Oftentimes, a stay occurs because an issue in your lawsuit has gone up on appeal to a higher court. There are other reasons for a stay as well. A stay can be one of the most frustrating things from the perspective of a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit because it is unclear when it will be over and when your case may be able to get back on track toward trial, but asking your lawyer to explain the reasons for the stay can help you better understand the issues in your case that need to be resolved before the case can proceed. Additionally, it is important to remember that just because a stay has been entered in your case does not mean that your lawyer has forgotten about your case or stopped working on it. Your lawyer should continue to review your file and conduct other work that will help them be prepared to pick right back up where they left off once the stay is lifted. Human events simply happen. Sometimes lawyers, judges, or others involved in your case get sick, have family emergencies, or have something else come up that necessitates rescheduling a case event. While every effort is made to keep case events as scheduled, there may be times where your deposition, mediation, or a court hearing may need to be postponed or rescheduled. Sometimes that reason may be because of you, such as if you were unexpectedly called to tend to a family emergency or if you were too ill to leave your house. Communication between your lawyer and you is essential in this type of situation, and this is one of the reasons it is important that your lawyer always have a reliable telephone number or email address to contact you. These are some of the typical reasons that the deadlines or dates in your civil lawsuit may change, but there can be others as well. Any time that you have a question about what is going on in your case, or why something has happened or changed, you should contact your attorney and ask. It is your case, and your lawyer is there to help your feel as comfortable as you can with what is happening and be able to plan for all of the important dates.

Everyone should be having the conversation about heart health with family and friends but also that conversation needs to include talking about making lifestyle changes that benefits the heart. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women. Making changes is very important but if done with someone you love and care about such as a family member or a close friend, this can only inspire you and help that loved one want to make heart healthy changes too. Preventing heart disease is possible and the following are steps that can be taken to improve your heart health which includes, of course, to stop smoking. Secondhand smoke is dangerous and needs to be avoided. Control cholesterol and blood pressure by visiting your doctor for the best advice. Limiting alcohol consumption by not more than 1 drink a day for women and not more than 2 drinks a day for men. Eating healthy by getting plenty of fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy products and limits on trans fats, sugars and salt. If you are that couch potato, get off the couch and get active. Aerobic exercise over two hours a week is best. Exercise and eating healthy will help you lose that 10 pounds of excessive weight which can lower risks of heart disease. If it is your significant other, a sibling or good friend that needs encouragement, try doing all of this together and both of you will benefit. Make plans for healthy meals and go shopping together. Get active by taking a walk every day and gradually building up the pace. Makes plans to meet at the park. In in our area we have beautiful parks and it doesn’t cost a penny to walk the trails. Walking your dog counts too. Take turns. One walks the dog at a more sedate pace while the other is walking at a more ‘get your heart pumping’ pace and then switch. Visit your doctor to start the discussion based on your own personal needs. Find that special person or persons and make a plan. Our weather will start improving so get outside. Get started on that walking regimen and be careful what you are eating. This is a start. Your heart will love it.

I’ve contacted a lawyer about a potential case, and they seemed interested in hearing what I have to say, can the lawyer start representing me immediately? This is a common question that many potential clients have for attorneys – what is the first step and when will that be done? As attorneys, we are dedicated to helping our clients achieve the best result possible in the most efficient manner possible. However, we also must balance this interest with the Rules of Professional Conduct. In other words, we must first determine that no such conflict would exist in our representation of the potential client. For firms that have hundreds of attorneys, the conflict check is extremely important as the larger the firm is, the more clients that the firm can take on and subsequently, the greater potential that a conflict in representing someone may exist. There are several rules within the Rules of Professional Conduct that outline whether or not a conflict exists in the representation of a client, but two of the most important rules are as follows: Rule 1.7 Conflict of Interest: Current Client (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), a lawyer shall not represent a client if the representation involves a concurrent conflict of interest. A concurrent conflict of interest exists if: (1) the representation of one client will be directly averse to another client; or (2) there is a significant risk that the representation of one or more clients will be materially limited by the lawyer's responsibilities to another client, a former client or a third person or by a personal interest of the lawyer. Rule 1.9 Duties to Former Clients (a) A lawyer who has formerly represented a client in a matter shall not thereafter represent another person in the same or a substantially related matter in which that person's interests are materially adverse to the interests of the former client unless the former client gives informed consent, confirmed in writing. As you can tell from these rules, there are exceptions to which attorneys can overcome these types of conflicts; however, it is imperative that these conflict checks are done to ensure that no prohibited representation of an individual takes place. How does one do a conflict check you may ask? To answer simply – there is no one set way for a conflict check to occur. Rather, how this is done generally will depend on the attorney – is he or she a sole practitioner? Is the attorney part of smaller firm? Does the attorney work for a national firm with hundreds of attorneys?  Regardless of how the check is done the most important information to have when doing a conflict check is the potential client’s name and background information – any spouses? Workplace information? Past civil actions, etc., as well as any information the potential client may have regarding the opposing party. Moreover, something as simple as ensuring that the spelling of the names of the potential clients, their spouses, as well as the opposing parties is key to ensuring that a conflict check is correct. In the case of sole practitioners, they may be able to rely on memory or a quick review of their files or computer database to determine whether a conflict exists in the representation of a potential client. For larger firms, the attorneys may need to rely on conflicts check technology which allows you to enter the prevalent information and then informs you whether or not a conflict exists. In sum, no matter how the conflict check takes place, the most important thing to remember is that it must take place at the outset so as to prevent any harm to the representation of the client or any negative repercussions to the attorney who has spoken to the potential client.

Ever testify in court? Whether be of your own freewill or as the result of a subpoena? I’ve not done it, but I can only imagine how intimidating and vulnerable one must feel to be on the witness stand. Putting criminal cases aside, as the witness looks directly at the offender adding additional fear as they face someone being accused of a crime that could result in prison, death penalty, whatever the case maybe; let’s talk about the civil action witness. In both types of law, the facts must be relayed in the simple truthful manner. If one tells the truth from the beginning, the facts should not be difficult to remember. Sounds easy enough, but let’s not forget about ones nerves and what that may do to the human being on the witness stand as the sole focal point in the courtroom. A step further, how does one testify as to the damages the family may experience due to the harms and loss of a loved one? If you ask me, that is extraordinary difficult in my mind. From my view, it seems that as frightening as it may be to be on the stand, the facts are what they are. You listen to the question and state the answer. But, how do you explain to a bunch of strangers what the loss of your parent or child or best friend has been? How to relay in minutes or hours to these jurors what a lifetime of loss of this person has been and the effects it has caused? Talk about feeling vulnerable and most likely needing a support person to see you through; we’ll that’s what I try to do. Families that come to Bordas & Bordas have been injured and sometimes, these injuries are catastrophic where a loved one has died because of injuries and harms. My philosophy to our clients, when it comes time to express to the jurors, that is, what this loss means to a family, they have to put a face to the name of this person who the jurors have heard about. We have a responsibility to that loved one to tell their story because they aren’t here to tell it and that is a difficult place for anyone to be in. What our clients know is they have the support of our team here at Bordas & Bordas. Our knowledgeable attorneys who are excellent in the courtroom also possess the genuine compassion for their clients. I’ve seen it with my own two eyes. That quality is invaluable to give a person as they are forced to relive some of the darkest moments they have ever experienced through the weight of a trial on their shoulders. I mean as if they haven’t already been through enough? Although I cannot put myself in someone’s shoes as a witness, given I have never done it, I certainly can be their support to grasp onto in their time of need. That is invaluable to me because I’ve grown to know them, their loved one, and I make it my goal that our clients never feel alone in a courtroom. Together, we strive to help bear the weight of that loss and pain, one that is so severe, it’s hard to put to words, but we see them through this pain as it’s relived amongst a group of strangers. We fight hard to find the justice that loved one and their family deserves and do everything we can to stop it from happening time and time again. Image courtesy of Unsplash.